The FBI is contacting more than one million computer owners and operators whose computers have been victimized and taken over by fraudsters and other criminals who have installed “bots” which they then use to launch distributed criminal computer attacks and fraud scams.

“The majority of victims are not even aware that their computer has been compromised or their personal information exploited,” said FBI Assistant Director for the Cyber Division James Finch. “An attacker gains control by infecting the computer with a virus or other malicious code and the computer continues to operate normally. Citizens can protect themselves from botnets and the associated schemes by practicing strong computer security habits to reduce the risk that your computer will be compromised.”

So, if the FBI calls, you might want to cooperate. But - exercise some common sense and a little caution: if you get a call or contact, be sure to confirm it’s actually the FBI. The classic technique used by scammers is to take commonly used communication methods and closely mirror or duplicate them in order to make you think you’re providing sensitive data to a legitimate business or agency, when in fact it’s the bad guy in disguise. So verify, verify, verify.

The FBI press release is here. Snipped from the press release, an important warning about being wary of potential malicious information requests:

“The FBI will not contact you online and request your personal information so be wary of fraud schemes that request this type of information, especially via unsolicited emails. To report fraudulent activity or financial scams, contact the nearest FBI office or police department, and file a complaint online with the Internet Crime Complaint Center, www.ic3.gov.”

Tags: security, fraud, fbi investigation